Denny Hamlin believes Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott are going to make the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs
Denny Hamlin has already raced his way into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs with two victories to his name this season.
With just four races remaining until the playoffs begin in September, Hamlin believes there’s two drivers who will join him in the field of 16: Bubba Wallace and Chase Elliott. Though winless, Wallace, the 23XI Racing driver, is currently in on points and sits in the 15th spot. Elliott, meanwhile, sits 40 points back in 20th.
With the schedule ahead, which includes two road courses (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Watkins Glen), Hamlin believes Elliott will find a way to get in given his proficiency on those type of tracks.
“Chase Elliott is -40 with four races to go,” Hamlin said on his “Actions Detrimental” podcast Monday. “You’re telling me he can’t make up 40 points in four races?… Breaking news, Chase Elliott is good on f—— road courses. He’s going to point them, and he’s going to get in on points — pending there’s not a crazy new winner at Daytona… Bubba Wallace [and] Chase Elliott are your two final guys.”
Denny Hamlin has confidence in Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott
Elliott, the 2020 Cup Series champion, has been chipping away at making up ground after missing six races earlier this season recovering from a broken left leg. After a string of strong finishes, Elliott has finished outside the top-10 in three of his last four races. He finished 13th in Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway after starting the race in the fourth position.
Wallace finished one spot ahead of Elliott at Richmond — his seventh finish outside the top-10 in his last eight races. An issue during a Stage 2 pit stop doomed his chances at coming out with a win.
“Just had a hiccup of a pit stop, but just never really rebounded, recovered. Like, balance just went away. Man, it’s just hard,” Wallace said after the race, via NASCAR.com. “This place is tough, you know, finding the right line and the right balance, and we just fell off of it. So, one of the best here had the worst [final] restart — [Kevin] Harvick — and held us up, unfortunately, but it is what it is. We finished 12th. All in all, a good points day today. I don’t know where we’re at. We’ve got a pretty good gap, I’m assuming, so it’s good day.”